Improving Prospects for a Peaceful Transition in Sudan - ReliefWeb

Improving Prospects for a
Peaceful Transition in Sudan
Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°143
Nairobi /Brussels, 14 January 2019

What’s new? Protests across Sudan flared up as the government cut a vital bread
subsidy. Economic grievances are fuelling demands for political change, with protest-
ers calling on President Omar al-Bashir, in power since 1989, to resign. Authorities
have responded with violence, killing dozens and arresting many more.

Why does it matter? In the past, President Bashir and his government have been
able to ride out popular demonstrations. But these newest protests, demanding
Bashir resign because of economic mismanagement and corruption, have spread to
loyalist regions and coincide with rising discontent in his party.

What should be done? Foreign governments influential in Khartoum should
continue to publicly discourage violence against demonstrators, with Western pow-
ers signalling that future aid and, in the U.S.’s case, sanctions relief are at stake. They
should seek to improve prospects for a peaceful transition by creating incentives for
Bashir to step down.

I.    Overview

Protests engulfing Sudanese towns and cities have seen dozens killed in crackdowns
by security forces and could turn bloodier still. Demonstrators express fury over sub-
sidy cuts and call for President Omar al-Bashir to resign. Discontent within the ruling
party, the depth of the economic crisis and the diverse makeup of protests suggest
Bashir has less room to manoeuvre than before. He may survive, though likely by
suppressing protests with levels of violence that would reverse his recent rapproche-
ment with Western powers and deepen Sudan’s economic woes. Another scenario
would entail his ouster by parts of the security apparatus, though this could also
prove destabilising. Better would be for Bashir to negotiate his exit, perhaps induced
by some form of conditional immunity. Outside powers should keep discouraging
crackdowns, with Western leaders underscoring that continuing to use violence
against protestors will scuttle aid and sanctions relief. They should also create incen-
tives for Bashir to resign and signal to Sudanese elites the economic lifeline on offer
were that to happen.
    Protests broke out in mid-December in Atbara, a mid-size town 350km from the
capital Khartoum, and quickly spread to towns and cities across the country. People
from all parts of Sudanese society initially took to the streets to protest the rising

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cost of staples, particularly bread; anger had been bubbling for years but heightened
when the government lifted wheat subsidies in January 2018 without putting in place
social protections to offset deteriorating living conditions. Now, many protesters
focus their ire on the president himself and demonstrations feature chants calling on
him and other top officials to step down.
    President Bashir has weathered many such protests in the past, but a number of
factors this time around are different. Protesters have gathered in Bashir’s strong-
holds, mostly in the wealthier centre of the country, and attacked several ruling party
offices. The police and other security agencies, including the National Intelligence
and Security Services (NISS), have at times responded brutally but the army has
shown greater restraint than before and, noting this, the opposition has urged generals
to remove Bashir. The feared Rapid Support Forces, a government militia renowned
for its brutal counterinsurgency tactics, has been active, particularly in Khartoum,
but less prominent than during previous protests, when they were responsible for
many deaths. Within the ruling party and security elites, ever-louder voices question
whether the country can escape its economic doldrums with Bashir at the helm, given
that his presidency is the greatest obstacle to obtaining foreign aid or loans.
    Three scenarios appear possible. One is that the president survives, though with-
out funds to offer protesters significant reforms, he will likely have to subdue them
by force. This in turn would slow Western re-engagement with Khartoum and almost
certainly end prospects of the U.S. lifting its remaining sanctions, including its des-
ignation of Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism, which in effect bars Sudan from
international debt relief or bailouts. A second scenario could see protests gathering
pace and prompting the president’s ouster by elements within his party or security
elites. This might usher in a new government and fresh direction, though it could also
trigger further instability. To insulate against coups, Bashir has regularly shuffled
security chiefs, marginalised rivals and kept the security forces factionalised. A take-
over by another senior figure could prompt infighting among divided security factions.
    A third scenario would see Bashir resign. This would allow for a leadership change
that could mollify protesters. Many see Bashir as emblematic of an unaccountable
and self-interested elite that has led the country into long-term economic crisis, iso-
lated Sudan and stubbornly refused to implement substantial reforms to resolve these
problems. Some of Bashir’s allies and former senior officials are encouraging him to
step down in 2020; the president pledging not to contest the 2020 vote would be
positive, though this carries a risk that he later reneges. For now, he shows few signs
of stepping down. Indeed, the president has strong incentives not to do so, fearing
the next government would hold him accountable for corruption at home or, if he
leaves Sudan, delivery to the International Criminal Court, which has indicted him
for atrocities in Darfur.
    For outside powers, the first priority should be to minimise bloodshed on the
streets. Foreign governments with sway in Khartoum should publicly discourage vio-
lence against demonstrators and call on the government to maintain forces, especially
the Rapid Support Forces, in check. Western powers should continue to signal that
future cooperation, aid and, in the U.S.’s case, normalisation of ties, are at stake. They
should warn commanders of the various security forces that they could face travel
bans, asset seizures and prosecution abroad for indiscriminate violence against
demonstrators.

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    More broadly, those governments should seek to improve prospects for a peaceful
transition; doing so is as critical as taking immediate steps to deter violence. Behind
the scenes, they should press the president to step down or at least pledge not to
seek re-election in 2020. They might also signal to Sudanese political and security
elites that greater aid and investment would likely be forthcoming without Bashir.
The UN Security Council might also offer to request the ICC defer investigation or
prosecution of Bashir’s case for one year, pursuant to the Rome Statute’s Article 16,
were he to resign or to leave office in 2020; the deferral could be extended provided
Bashir stayed out of – and did not interfere in any way with – Sudanese politics. The
downsides to deferring his case would be enormous, but without a pledge along these
lines, Bashir is unlikely to step down.

II.    Protests Spread Across Sudan

Protests broke out on 19 December in Atbara, a town about 350km from the capital
Khartoum and the historic home of Sudan’s once-powerful national labour move-
ment.1 This followed a cut that same month in the government subsidy on bread in
River Nile state, where Atbara is located, which tripled its price. Demonstrations
quickly spread across the country to at least 28 towns and cities, including major
centres such as Port Sudan, El-Gadarif and, eventually, the twin cities of Khartoum
and Omdurman, the country’s political and economic centres. Videos posted on so-
cial media, circulating despite the government’s attempt to shut down the internet,
showed protesters calling for Bashir to step down from power.2 Unusually, protests
are taking place in riverine areas, which are close to Sudan’s wealthier centre and
traditionally loyal to Bashir, making them all the more threatening to his rule.3 Pro-
testers have attacked offices of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) in a num-
ber of towns, ransacking and sometimes burning the buildings; rarely in the past
have such attacks occurred outside Darfur or Sudan’s other conflict zones.

1
  For past Crisis Group work on the implications of Sudan’s long-term economic crisis and the pro-
spects of full re-engagement with Western powers, see, Crisis Group Africa Reports N°194, Sudan:
Major Reform or More War, 29 November 2012; N°174, Divisions in Sudan’s Ruling Party and the
Threat to the Country’s Future Stability, 4 May 2011 and Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°128,
A New Roadmap to Make U.S. Sudan Sanctions Relief Work, 29 September 2017. Sudan’s national
labour movement was historically influential, playing a lead role in the agitation for the end of Anglo-
Egyptian rule and demands for expansion of political space after independence. Bashir banned in-
dependent unions and imprisoned leading figures in the labour movement after taking power in
1989 but unions are still allowed to organise by sector and an alliance of professional unions is
spearheading this latest wave of protests. The date 19 December is also significant as it marks the
day when, in 1955, Sudanese nationalists kicked off a campaign for independence from the Anglo-
Egyptian condominium that ruled Sudan between 1899 and 1956.
2
  See, “Protesters call on Sudan’s President Bashir to step down”, BBC, 4 January 2019.
3
  Crisis Group interviews, academics, security figures and National Congress Party (NCP) officials,
Khartoum, December 2018–January 2019. Unlike in 2013, the protests do not mainly include just
opposition supporters. Some affiliates of the ruling party have broken with the government and
backed the demonstrators; the response of many senior officials to calls for change has been muted.
One NCP official said it was significant that senior officials apart from Bashir have come out to con-
demn the protesters or to defend the government. He said this uncertainty about events but also a
general frustration with Bashir’s administration, including among ruling party supporters unhappy
with the economy and wanting a change of direction.

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    Protesters come from mixed political and economic backgrounds. They include
members of Sudan’s longstanding leftist movements, the Sudanese Communist Par-
ty and the Sudanese Congress Party (whose members are particularly active on social
media) and a number of other political parties, along with professional trade unions,
notably doctors, who are currently on strike.4 The newly-formed Sudanese Profes-
sionals Association – an umbrella group encompassing several professional unions –
organised a march on the presidential palace on 25 December and again on 31 Decem-
ber demanding Bashir’s resignation. The association is coordinating with Girifna,
a loose coalition of youth movements formed by anti-regime university students in
2009 to agitate for reform in Sudan and a change in the country’s leadership.5 The
bulk of the protesters, however, are ordinary Sudanese with no strong political affili-
ation and who blame their dire economic plight on the NCP’s economic misman-
agement and kleptocracy.
    So far, the Sudanese government’s response has largely involved deploying its
four security organs: the police, the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), the National Intelli-
gence and Security Service (NISS) and Rapid Support Forces militia.6 Those forces,
accustomed to violent tactics, have shot into crowds and hurled teargas at protesters.
Amnesty International stated on 24 December that it had “credible reports” that 37
people had already been killed.7 That said, security forces have not yet unleashed the
level of brutality witnessed in 2013, when militias indiscriminately killed almost 200
protesters then opposing the removal of a fuel subsidy.8
    Bashir has labelled the protesters “vandals and looters” and in a speech, delivered
in the NCP’s stronghold of Gezira state, just south of Khartoum, describing them as
“traitors, mercenaries, agents and heretics”.9 But at the same time, he has urged the
police not to use “excessive force”.10 Reportedly, some senior security officials have
counselled against using indiscriminate violence, fearing this could provoke a larger
public backlash and weaken the government’s relationship with Western countries,
who have already condemned the violence.11

4
   Sudan’s opposition parties have joined protesters in urging Bashir to step down. A number of
smaller parties affiliated with the NCP also on 1 January asked Bashir to leave power and form a
government of technocrats to resolve the crisis. Protesters on the streets, however, have been keen
to emphasise their non-affiliation with any of the mainstream political parties.
5
  Girifna means “We are fed up” in Arabic.
6
  In an effort to prevent a coup, Bashir has deliberately created numerous separate security and
intelligence units, with loyalties to different leaders.
7
  “Amnesty International: 37 killed in Sudan protests”, Associated Press, 25 December 2018.
8
   ‘Sudan: Five years later and no justice for 185 protesters shot dead by security forces’, Amnesty
International, 9 October 2018.
9
  “Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir: ‘Our duty is to stop looting’”, Al Jazeera, 31 December 2018; “Sudan’s
protests points to weaknesses in Bashir’s rule”, Associated Press, 27 December 2018.
10
    “Sudan’s Bashir tells police to rein in force against protesters”, Daily Nation, 31 December 2018.
In 2013, Bashir opted for a violent response, sending militias out to the streets to shoot into crowds.
He did not issue statements acknowledging the legitimacy of protesters’ grievances as he has in 2018.
11
    Crisis Group telephone interview, Sudanese academic, December 2018. The head of the intelli-
gence service, Salah Gosh, is said to be coordinating the regime’s response to the protests and he
has reportedly advised against a harsh crackdown. The UK, Norway, the U.S. plus Canada, the “Troi-
ka” of countries coordinating talks that could lead to full re-engagement between Khartoum and the
West warned 8 January that the actions of Sudanese authorities in response to protests would have

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    Encouraged by the army’s reticence, a coalition of political parties including some
Islamists previously allied with Bashir, has urged the military to seize power.12 Al-
though protesters favour the wholesale fall of the government, many would welcome
a transition that sees Bashir leave, offers a chance for economic relief and opens the
way to political reform.13 Responding to calls for a military intervention, Bashir de-
clared 8 January that he was open to handing over to the military but not, in words
he uses to describe the political opposition, to “traitors”.14

III. Economic Grievances at a Tipping Point

President Bashir’s government has weathered protests and contended with econom-
ic discontent in the past. But entering 2019, it has fewer options for generating the
revenue necessary to assuage protesters. It has faced a severe economic crisis since
the start of 2018, consistently refused to cut exorbitant state spending in the security
sector and lost potential investment due to sanctions, international isolation and a
failure to develop an attractive environment for investors. The country’s already-
high levels of debt mean that it will be difficult to borrow funds to finance its deficits,
and its chief financial backers in the Gulf are less generous than in the past.
    Sudan’s economic crisis originates in part from South Sudan’s secession in 2011,
which led to the loss of nearly three quarters of Sudan’s oil reserves. Previously, oil
production generated around half of all tax revenues and two thirds of Sudan’s for-
eign exchange earnings.15 The secession agreement sought to cushion the impact of
South Sudan’s independence through a series of lump-sum payments from the now
oil-rich Juba to Khartoum amounting to some $3 billion. But this arrangement only
went so far in compensating for fundamental damage to the Sudanese economy and,
in any case, Juba has been unable to pay up since South Sudan’s civil war broke out
in December 2013.16
    While the economic shock of South Sudan’s secession was inevitable, Khartoum
also failed to prepare for it. Long-term economic mismanagement, pervasive graft
and high military expenditure have contributed to unaffordable levels of spending.17
International isolation caused by U.S. sanctions, introduced in the late 1990s, inhib-
ited attempts to diversify the economy through foreign investment, leaving Sudan

an impact on efforts at re-engagement. See p. 12, also “Troika countries say human rights violations
during Sudan protests may affect engagement with Khartoum”, Sudan Tribune, 9 January 2019.
12
   See, “No objection to handing power to the army: Sudanese president”, Sudan Tribune, 9 Janu-
ary 2019.
13
   Crisis Group telephone interview, Sudanese civil society activist, December 2018.
14
   See, “Bashir scoffs at Sudan protesters, says army won’t back traitors”, Africa News, 9 January
2019 and “al-Bashir hints at handing power to army”, allafrica.com, 9 January 2019.
15
     Sudan: 2013 Article IV Consultation”, IMF Country Report No. 13/317, October 2013, p. 4.
16
   More than two decades of easy oil money had also made Sudan’s large agricultural economy un-
competitive. See Kabbashi Suliman, “Understanding and Avoiding the Oil Curse in Sudan”, in Ibra-
him Elbadawi and Hoda Selim (eds.), Understanding and Avoiding the Oil Curse in Resource-rich
Arab Economies (Cambridge, 2016), pp. 421-460.
17
   Sudan is rated 175 out of 180 on Transparency International’s corruption perception index. See,
“Sudan, South Sudan, near bottom of 2017 corruption perceptions index”, dabangasudan.com, 23
February 2018.

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with a crippling lack of foreign-exchange reserves, which has resulted in shortages,
particularly of fuel.18 A small gold boom since 2011 has not made up for the loss of
oil revenue, in part because traders avoided selling to the Central Bank and instead
smuggled gold out of Sudan to countries where prices were higher.19 Furthermore,
Sudan’s $55 billion in external debt prevents the government from accessing new
foreign credit, except ad hoc loans mostly from Gulf allies. Sudan would normally be
eligible for debt relief under the joint International Monetary Fund (IMF)-World
Bank Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC), but cannot gain that while it
remains on the U.S.’s list of state sponsors of terrorism.20
    Authorities in Khartoum like to blame U.S. sanctions for all the country’s eco-
nomic woes. But their own failure to encourage dynamism contributes significantly
to economic dysfunction. Investors talk of encountering a sclerotic bureaucracy which
insists on imposing byzantine rules for simple transactions, causing many to stay
away. The security establishment’s overbearing control of economic policy, including
in determining allocation of foreign currency, does little to improve conditions for
business.21
    The government’s limited attempts at belt tightening have both failed to address
the economic crisis and fuelled discontent. In January 2018, its annual budget includ-
ed a cut to wheat subsidies. The World Bank and IMF had encouraged such measures,
seeing subsidies as a costly and ineffective method to help the poor, but recommended
Khartoum offset these cuts by increasing spending on social protection, such as
making cash transfers to needy families.22 The government did not do so. Moreover,
because its efforts to reduce spending focused on eliminating subsidies rather than
downsizing the military budget or recovering revenues lost to corruption, they hit
the poor hardest.23 In response to the wheat subsidy cut, bread prices doubled and
the cost of other staples, particularly sorghum and millet, increased as the market
reacted to extra demand.24
    At the same time, the government devalued the Sudanese pound from seven to
eighteen pounds per U.S. dollar and then later to 30 pounds per dollar. Following

18
   “Sudan: Staff Report for the 2017 Article IV Consultation”, IMF Country Report No. 17/364, 13
November 2017, p. 25.
19
   Crisis Group interview, Sudanese politician, Khartoum, 22 February 2018.
20 For countries on the U.S. state sponsors of terrorism list (SSTL), sanctions are applied under four
main categories: restrictions on U.S. foreign assistance, a ban on defence exports and sales, certain
controls over exports of dual use items, and miscellaneous financial and other restrictions. Most
importantly, this means the U.S. government cannot support World Bank debt relief assistance to
Sudan. Due to the influential positions the U.S. holds within international financial institutions
(World Bank and IMF) this effectively means that the U.S. government can veto debt relief or major
economic assistance programs for Sudan. “State Sponsors of Terrorism”, U.S. Department of State.
21
   Crisis Group interviews, Sudanese and Saudi agri-investors, Khartoum and Cairo, April 2018.
22
   Crisis Group interviews, World Bank and IMF economists, Khartoum, February 2018.
23
   According to the government, spending on security and defence was 23.9 per cent of total ex-
penditures. “Projected General Budget Expenditure of the National Government for the Year 2018
on the Basis of Sectors”, Government of the Republic of Sudan, December 2017, p. 80. Hard copy
seen by Crisis Group.
24
   Wheat smuggling was rife, with traders buying the subsidised wheat in Sudan and selling it at a
high price in neighbouring countries. Crisis Group interviews, Sudanese economist and politician,
Khartoum, February 2018; “Food Price Monitoring and Analysis Bulletin”, Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations, 16 February 2018.

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the first devaluation in early January 2018, the illegal parallel market rate, which
had fluctuated between eighteen and twenty Sudanese pounds per dollar, rapidly
increased to 31 and later doubled to 60 pounds per dollar.25 The government then
became concerned about the possibility of uncontrollable hyperinflation and, from
February 2018, put in place limits on the amount of money Sudanese could withdraw
from banks.26 In November 2018, the official inflation rate stood at 68.93 per cent,
one of the world’s highest.27
    Already in January and February 2018, the combined effects of the subsidy cuts
and the currency devaluation stimulated a number of well-coordinated protests.
Many demonstrators were committed anti-government activists and some were linked
to established opposition political parties; the protests failed to attract the broader
social base that has taken to the streets today and were not large enough to threaten
Bashir. Still, security forces arrested over a hundred protesters and held them with-
out charge for weeks.28 Newspapers that covered the events had entire print runs
confiscated and some journalists were temporarily detained. The harsh measures the
government used illustrated its nervousness about potential public anger at the eco-
nomic downturn.
    While Sudan’s relations with Western powers, particularly the U.S. and European
Union, have improved, they have yet to pay economic dividends. Over the past few
years, Khartoum has skilfully used its advantages as a partner on counter-terrorism
(particularly regarding jihadist groups in neighbouring Libya), its influential role in
South Sudan and its cooperation with the EU on migration management to slowly
build better relations with Western countries. Western diplomats also cite Sudan’s
strategically important location and the need to prevent further economic decline
that could lead to political instability and conflict as drivers of their gradual re-
engagement.29 Though European concerns over migration attract the most press
coverage, diplomats say they worry most about the economy’s structural fragility and
the possibility of state collapse that could further destabilise the region.30
    In October 2017, the U.S. lifted some economic sanctions, which had been in place
since the late 1990s. As yet, however, this has not had a notable effect. Khartoum re-
mains deeply in debt and considered a risky investment destination. The second
phase of U.S. sanctions relief, the program for which was announced in November
2018 – requiring Khartoum to make improvements in six areas, including in its re-
spect for human rights – should be more significant, potentially leading to Sudan’s
eventual removal from the U.S.’s state sponsors of terrorism list. This could allow the
country to secure debt relief or a full World Bank or IMF bailout.31 Sudanese officials

25
   “Sudan pound slides to widest over official rate since devaluation”, Reuters, 10 December 2018.
26
   Crisis Group interview, Sudanese economist, Khartoum, 15 February 2018.
27
   “Sudan’s inflation rises to 68.93 per cent as dollar price hits record high”, Sudan Tribune, 11 De-
cember 2018.
28
   “Dozens arrested in Sudan as protests over price hikes continue”, Sudan Tribune, 17 January
2018; Crisis Group interview, Sudanese opposition activist detained by government January – April
2018, phone, April 2018.
29
   Crisis Group interviews, Senior EU diplomat, Khartoum, 20 February 2018; EU officials, Brus-
sels, January 2018; U.S. government officials, Washington D.C., March 2018.
30
   Crisis Group interview, European ambassador, Khartoum, June 2018.
31
   “Sudan Commits to Strengthening Cooperation and Meaningful Reforms”, U.S. State Depart-
ment, 8 November 2018.

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also argue that the country’s continued designation as a state sponsor of terrorism
has kept foreign investors and banks away. The country’s foreign minister has said
Khartoum would quickly ask for a bailout by the IMF if the designation is lifted.32
    In recent years, Khartoum has relied heavily on assistance from Gulf partners,
particularly Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar, to prop up its
ailing economy. According to the IMF, Gulf monarchies deposited an estimated $2.5
billion into the Central Bank of Sudan in 2015-16.33 This was, in part, a payment for
Khartoum’s 2014 decision to break off relations with Tehran and committing thou-
sands of Sudanese forces to the Saudi-led war against the Huthis in Yemen. In return,
Riyadh also lobbied the U.S. for the repeal of economic sanctions.
    These warming ties suffered a setback in June 2017 due to the Gulf crisis, which saw
Saudi Arabia, the UAE and a number of their allies sever diplomatic relations with
and impose an economic blockade on Qatar.34 Despite pressure from Riyadh and
Abu Dhabi, and unlike some other African governments, Sudan has not picked a side
in the Gulf dispute, preferring maintain good relations across the board. That said,
despite its nominally neutrality, Sudan is ideologically closer to the more Islamist-
leaning administrations in Qatar and its main ally, Turkey. Though Khartoum has
maintained cordial ties to Saudi Arabia and UAE (and retains troops in Yemen),
financial assistance from those two powers has mostly dried up at a critical moment,
in part, perhaps, because they view Khartoum as insufficiently loyal but also because
they see investment in Sudan as risky.35 This has contributed to the vulnerable posi-
tion in which President Bashir now finds himself.

IV. Bashir’s Choices

President Bashir has shown himself capable of weathering popular unrest in the past.
This time around, however, he has fewer options to placate demonstrators and is
widely seen, including by many within his own ruling party, as part of the country’s
malaise rather than an antidote to it. Even so, the critical questions at this juncture
are whether protests calling for Bashir’s resignation will gather force and, if so, wheth-
er this will change the calculations of the security forces and elites who still support
him. Three different scenarios could unfold.
    The first, and seemingly most probable, is that the security services step up repres-
sion to disperse protesters, deter future demonstrations and crack down on the unions
and associations organising them. As in the past, such a campaign could see protests
dwindle without any immediate threat to Bashir’s hold on power. This would ensure

32
   See, “Trump administration gives Sudan a way to come in from the cold”, Foreign Policy, 8 No-
vember 2018.
33
   “Sudan: Staff Report for the 2017 Article IV Consultation—Debt Sustainability”, IMF Country
Report No. 17/364, 13 November 2017, p. 3.
34
   This has had far-reaching and destabilising effects on the Horn of Africa region beyond Sudan.
Crisis Group Commentary, “A Dangerous Gulf in the Horn: How the Inter-Arab Crisis is Fuelling
Regional Tensions”, 3 August 2017.
35
   Crisis Group interviews, Emirati government figures and think-tank officials, Abu Dhabi, July
2018. Officials say they appreciate Sudan’s assistance in Yemen, where Sudanese troops are deployed
in some of the most dangerous front lines, but find Bashir erratic and that his precise loyalties are
unclear.

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Bashir’s short-term survival, but greater repression risks backfiring and prompting
more public outrage. A crackdown would likely slow, if not halt, Sudan’s improving
relations with Western powers and lifting of U.S. sanctions, thus blocking its path to
debt relief or a World Bank or IMF bailout and leaving the government no good op-
tion to improve economic conditions. Bashir would simply store up more problems
for the future, when unaddressed grievances could potentially trigger even greater
protest.
    In this scenario, countries that remain friendly to Khartoum will almost certainly
be unwilling or unable to provide the funds necessary to reverse the economic slide.
Bashir may look to the Gulf, as he has in the past. But while Gulf leaders on both sides
of the 2017 intra-Gulf spat (Saudi Arabia and the UAE, on one side, and Qatar on the
other) can be described as allies and Riyadh and Abu Dhabi in particular want Suda-
nese troops to remain in Yemen, they will probably not provide game-changing sup-
port.36 An injection of cash from the Gulf – most likely from Qatar – might, in other
words, buy Bashir time but would not address the country’s underlying economic
challenges. While Turkey and Russia, both relatively new players in Khartoum, have
growing business and diplomatic interests in the country, those interests are not suf-
ficiently large or important to motivate a more serious, direct investment in the gov-
ernment.37 China’s involvement in Sudan, traditionally focused on developing the oil
industry, has diminished since the south’s secession.
    A second scenario might involve the president’s removal by elements within his
own security forces, particularly if protests continue to spread and Bashir still refus-
es to step down. This scenario might arise if protests grow in force, the economic cri-
sis deepens and the situation threatens the survival of not only Bashir but also other
top officials. Still, given Bashir’s repeated reshuffles of leadership positions in the
security agencies, such a scenario could provoke infighting among security factions
to determine the succession of leadership.
    For now, however, a successful coup appears a remote prospect. It is unclear that
any figure could unite the factionalised security sector behind such a move. True, the
military so far has shown less appetite to confront protesters than it has in the past.
Some evidence suggests soldiers share protesters’ frustration over grim economic
conditions.38 But no evidence suggests Bashir’s ouster is imminent. Senior generals
issued a statement backing the president a few days after the protests kicked off in
response to reports of divisions within their ranks.39 Many have engaged in war crimes
and serious corruption themselves and worry about retribution were Bashir gone.

36
   Ibid.
37
   Crisis Group interview, Turkish diplomat, Khartoum, February 2018. The Bashir administration
has sought to deepen ties with Russia in recent years although it is unclear if Moscow deems these
budding relations sufficiently significant for them to invest directly in the government’s survival.
President Bashir visited Moscow in July 2018 and urged the Russians to broaden their engagement
with Sudan in the face of what he described as Western hostility. He also travelled to Syria, a key
ally of Russia, with Moscow’s apparent encouragement, in the third week of December. The head of
Sudan’s defence subcommittee said 13 January that a draft agreement had been signed that could
pave the way for Russia to build a military base on Sudanese territory. “Sudan says Russia could set
up military base in Red Sea”, Sudan Tribune, 13 January 2019.
38
   Crisis Group interviews, security officials, Khartoum, January 2019.
39
   “Sudan’s military pledges to stand by embattled president”, Washington Post, 23 December 2018.

Improving Prospects for a Peaceful Transition in Sudan
Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°143, 14 January 2019                                      Page 10

Senior officials also express concern about the potential revival of insurgencies in
Darfur were Bashir to depart.40
    Bashir reportedly trusts his intelligence services, key members of which hail from
his own riverine ethnic group, more than he does the army, which recruits from a
wider pool and whose loyalty is more ambiguous. Salah Gosh, the National Intelli-
gence and Security Services (NISS) chief, now seen as the second most powerful man
in the country, was accused of coup-plotting in 2012, and spent six months in prison.
But after Bashir restored him as security chief in February 2018, he played a key role
in purging anti-Bashir elements from the NCP and NISS in 2018 and is likelier to be
a central figure in suppressing protesters than taking up their cause.41
    Nor do leaders of other security agencies appear inclined to make such a move. On
25 December, chief of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – a pro-government militia
recruited mainly from the Darfur and Kordofan regions – Mohamed Hamdan Daglo
“Hametti” made a speech in Khartoum state to a unit recently arrived from North
Darfur, in which he urged the government to provide more services to the people.42
Though his statement received wide attention and seemed an implicit criticism of
the government, he has shown no sign of acting against Bashir.43 In any case, while
the RSF are a major element of the security architecture, they remain mobile and
relatively lightly armed, accustomed to counterinsurgency campaigns in Darfur. Those
forces are not strong enough to take on the Sudanese army, assuming it remains loyal
to Bashir.
    A third and optimal scenario would see the president resigning or pledging not to
contest the 2020 election, with the encouragement and pressure of allies within the
ruling party or security agencies and foreign governments. Bashir’s decision to seek
another term had already divided the NCP and provoked some consternation within
elements of the security services; this latest wave of protests has left him further
weakened.44 Dissenters within the party, or those sidelined by the president, view him
and his style of government – decision-making concentrated in the presidential pal-
ace and a small circle of advisors, with technocratic ministers marginalised – as a
liability.45 A negotiated transition, in which Bashir himself agreed to hand over pow-
er to a new government, potentially including moderate NCP and military figures,
would be the best way out of the crisis. It could set the country on a path to receiving
emergency aid and undertaking necessary reforms to end repeated cycles of conflict.

40
    Crisis Group interview, Sudanese security official, Khartoum, December 2018.
41
   “Sudanese president replaces security and intelligence chief”, Reuters, 11 February 2018; Crisis
Group interviews, Sudanese political analysts and journalists, Khartoum, February 2018.
42
   “Bashir haemorrhaging domestic support as Sudanese protests rage”, Middle East Eye, 28 De-
cember 2018.
43
   Sudan has sent thousands of RSF fighters to fight with the Saudi-led alliance in Yemen. Recent
reports suggest that RSF soldiers are deployed in the most bitterly contested front lines and taken
substantial casualties, breeding discontent. Crisis Group phone interview, Sudan analyst, December
2018; “On the front line of the Saudi war in Yemen: Child soldiers from Darfur”, New York Times,
28 December 2018.
44
   Crisis Group telephone interview, Sudan analyst, December 2018.
45
   Crisis Group interview, former senior Sudanese government official, Khartoum, June 2018. The
official said he was fed up with Bashir’s heavy-handed rule. He said Bashir made all key decisions
and was mercurial and erratic, rendering it impossible to conduct government business in a profes-
sional manner.

Improving Prospects for a Peaceful Transition in Sudan
Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°143, 14 January 2019                                          Page 11

    The odds of Bashir taking this route also appear slim. Nothing in his track record
suggests he will give up power easily; the recent moves to amend the constitution
and remove term limits suggest he already is manoeuvring to retain power beyond
2020. Moreover, he has strong incentives to hold on. Out of power, he would likely
fear for his safety, whether at home or living in asylum in a friendly country. He could
orchestrate a handover to a loyal general, but he and his family would still risk facing
accountability for corruption or other crimes. His ICC indictment for genocide, crimes
against humanity and war crimes in Darfur narrows his options for seeking refuge
abroad. Those Gulf countries that would be his most probable hosts, chiefly Saudi
Arabia, are not parties to the Rome Statute. But settling there would still be a gamble
for Bashir, as any shift in geopolitical winds or his host country’s domestic policy
might leave him exposed to international justice.46

V.     How Outside Actors Should Respond

For Western and other outside powers, the immediate priority should be to avert
further violence during protests. On 8 January, the Troika – the UK, Norway and the
U.S. plus Canada – issued a strong statement demanding that Khartoum undertake
political reform and warning that further indiscriminate violence against protesters
would have consequences for future re-engagement between Sudan and the West.
This was an encouraging first step. These parties should continue to press the Suda-
nese authorities to exercise restraint, release political prisoners and address the pro-
testers’ legitimate demands. The U.S. should explicitly pin further sanctions relief on
the government switching to a more measured response toward the protesters.
    More broadly, outside actors should do everything in their power to improve pro-
spects for a peaceful transition. The optimal scenario would be some form of negoti-
ated exit whereby Bashir steps down and Sudanese elites form a government more
open to political and economic reform and that has less troubled relationships with
key outside powers.47 Such a transition would open up the possibility of further re-
engagement with the West and international financial institutions and could offer
a lifeline to a population battered by the country’s economic decline. It might bring
also benefits to non-Western powers. Many countries, including Gulf powers, eye
Sudan’s agricultural potential and see the country as a potential bread basket, but
are reluctant to invest given the volatility under Bashir. A fresh direction could im-
prove prospects for investment and provide greater food security for those countries.
    The UN Security Council might consider offering to defer Bashir’s prosecution at
the ICC if he steps down (an idea Crisis Group initially floated in 2012).48 Prominent

46
   If Bashir stays in Sudan at the end of a transition process, he would still fear facing Slobodan Mi-
lošević’s fate, betrayal by successors and being handed over to international jurisdiction. If he goes
to a country not party to the ICC, he would fear changed circumstances that might eventually result
in his delivery to an international court as occurred with Charles Taylor. Taylor reportedly received
international guarantees that he would avoid prosecution before his resignation as Liberian Presi-
dent in August 2003. In March 2006, reportedly under U.S. pressure, Nigerian authorities, who had
granted Taylor exile, arrested and extradited him to Liberia, where he was handed over to the Spe-
cial Court for Sierra Leone, an international tribunal.
47
   Crisis Group interview, western diplomats, Nairobi, December 2018.
48
   See, Crisis Group Africa Reports N°194, Sudan: Major Reform or More War, 29 November 2012.

Improving Prospects for a Peaceful Transition in Sudan
Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°143, 14 January 2019                                      Page 12

Sudanese businessman and philanthropist Mo Ibrahim, who has also called for Bashir
to step down, has echoed this proposal.49 A Security Council deferral would involve
the Council requesting the ICC to put off investigation or prosecution of his case for
one year, pursuant to the Rome Statute’s Article 16; the deferral could be extended
provided Bashir stayed out of Sudanese politics.50 There would clearly be enormous
downsides to doing so – for justice in Sudan and potentially for the ICC itself. The
Council would have to insist on some alternative form of accountability for atrocities
in Darfur.51 But without a pledge along these lines, it appears highly improbable that
Bashir will step aside willingly. Bashir himself has cast the ICC issue as a matter of
national pride so a deferral would also be face-saving; sources close to the president
suggest that even though the indictment has inhibited his travel less over the past
few years than previously, he still views it as a major burden.52

VI. Conclusion

In three decades at the helm in Sudan, President Omar al-Bashir has survived Khar-
toum’s internecine politics, repeated wars in Sudan’s peripheries, his country splitting
in two after South Sudan’s secession, indictment by the ICC and frequently hostile
neighbours in a particularly rough neighbourhood. He has held on despite repeated
predictions of his demise; indeed, his political manoeuvres in Khartoum over the
past few years have done much to shield him from potential contenders. Vesting too
much hope in the president stepping down any time soon would fly in the face of this
record.
    Yet the president is running out of road. Unable to reverse the economic slide, he
must rely on repression alone to contain a population increasingly enraged at dete-
riorating living conditions. But the harsher his repression, the more probable his
relations with the West deteriorate again and the farther the funds necessary to turn
around the economy slip from his reach. Bashir may well survive this round of pro-
tests. But if he does, it will almost certainly be at the cost of further economic decline,
greater popular anger, more protests and even tougher crackdowns. At some point,
his departure appears inevitable. Outside powers should do everything possible to
prevent violence in the meantime, work for as smooth a transition as possible and
find him an exit.
                                                Nairobi/Brussels, 14 January 2019

49
   “ICC should drop charges against Bashir if he steps down”, Eye Witness News, 11 January 2019.
Mo Ibrahim is a member of Crisis Group’s Board of Trustees.
50
    Article 16 of the Rome Statute governing the ICC specifies that the Security Council can pass a
resolution under Chapter VII of the UN Charter to defer an investigation or prosecution for twelve
months and can also choose to renew the deferral through the same process. See “Rome Statute of
the International Criminal Court”, International Criminal Court, 17 July 1998.
51
   In 2012, Crisis Group suggested that the UN Security Council engage with the African Union and
the Arab League to strengthen domestic legal institutions’ capacity to act against atrocity crimes
and so make ICC intervention less necessary under the complementarity principle. See, Crisis Group
Africa Reports N°194, Sudan: Major Reform or More War, 29 November 2012.
52
   According to one security official, one reason Bashir won’t step down is because he knows “the
West is waiting for him”; in that sense some reassurance on the ICC would help. Crisis Group phone
interview, security official in Khartoum, January 2019.

Improving Prospects for a Peaceful Transition in Sudan
Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°143, 14 January 2019                                              Page 13

Appendix A: About the International Crisis Group

The International Crisis Group (Crisis Group) is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organisa-
tion, with some 120 staff members on five continents, working through field-based analysis and high-level
advocacy to prevent and resolve deadly conflict.

Crisis Group’s approach is grounded in field research. Teams of political analysts are located within or
close by countries or regions at risk of outbreak, escalation or recurrence of violent conflict. Based on
information and assessments from the field, it produces analytical reports containing practical recommen-
dations targeted at key international, regional and national decision-takers. Crisis Group also publishes
CrisisWatch, a monthly early-warning bulletin, providing a succinct regular update on the state of play in
up to 70 situations of conflict or potential conflict around the world.

Crisis Group’s reports are distributed widely by email and made available simultaneously on its website,
www.crisisgroup.org. Crisis Group works closely with governments and those who influence them, includ-
ing the media, to highlight its crisis analyses and to generate support for its policy prescriptions.

The Crisis Group Board of Trustees – which includes prominent figures from the fields of politics, diplo-
macy, business and the media – is directly involved in helping to bring the reports and recommendations
to the attention of senior policymakers around the world. Crisis Group is chaired by former UN Deputy
Secretary-General and Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Lord
(Mark) Malloch-Brown.

Crisis Group’s President & CEO, Robert Malley, took up the post on 1 January 2018. Malley was formerly
Crisis Group’s Middle East and North Africa Program Director and most recently was a Special Assistant
to former U.S. President Barack Obama as well as Senior Adviser to the President for the Counter-ISIL
Campaign, and White House Coordinator for the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf region. Previous-
ly, he served as President Bill Clinton’s Special Assistant for Israeli-Palestinian Affairs.

Crisis Group’s international headquarters is in Brussels, and the organisation has offices in seven other
locations: Bogotá, Dakar, Istanbul, Nairobi, London, New York, and Washington, DC. It has presences in
the following locations: Abuja, Algiers, Bangkok, Beirut, Caracas, Gaza City, Guatemala City, Hong Kong,
Jerusalem, Johannesburg, Juba, Mexico City, New Delhi, Rabat, Tbilisi, Toronto, Tripoli, Tunis, and Yan-
gon.

Crisis Group receives financial support from a wide range of governments, foundations, and private
sources. Currently Crisis Group holds relationships with the following governmental departments and
agencies: Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Austrian Development Agency, Global Af-
fairs Canada, Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union Instrument contributing to Stability and
Peace, Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, French Development Agency, French Ministry of Europe and
Foreign Affairs, Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Irish Aid, Japanese International Cooperation Agen-
cy, Liechtenstein Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign Affairs, New Zealand Minis-
try of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs and the Emirati Ministry
of Foreign Affairs.

Crisis Group also holds relationships with the following foundations: Carnegie Corporation of New York,
Elders Foundation, Henry Luce Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Korea
Foundation, Oak Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Ploughshares Fund, Robert Bosch Stiftung,
Rockefeller Brothers Fund, UniKorea Foundation and Wellspring Philanthropic Fund.

January 2019

Improving Prospects for a Peaceful Transition in Sudan
Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°143, 14 January 2019                                        Page 14

Appendix B: Reports and Briefings on Africa since 2016

Special Reports                                    Electoral Poker in DR Congo, Africa Report
Exploiting Disorder: al-Qaeda and the Islamic        N°259, 4 April 2018 (also available in French).
 State, Special Report N°1, 14 March 2016          Cameroon’s Anglophone Crisis: How the
 (also available in Arabic and French).             Catholic Church Can Promote Dialogue,
Seizing the Moment: From Early Warning to           Africa Briefing N°138, 26 April 2018 (also
 Early Action, Special Report N°2, 22 June          available in French).
 2016.                                             Increasing the Stakes in DR Congo’s Electoral
Counter-terrorism Pitfalls: What the U.S. Fight      Poker, Africa Briefing N°139, 8 June 2018
 against ISIS and al-Qaeda Should Avoid,             (also available in French).
 Special Report N°3, 22 March 2017.                DR Congo: The Bemba Earthquake, Africa
                                                    Briefing N°140, 15 June 2018 (also available
Central Africa                                      in French).
Chad: Between Ambition and Fragility, Africa       Cameroon’s Far North: A New Chapter in the
 Report N°233, 30 March 2016 (also available        Fight Against Boko Haram, Africa Report
 in French).                                        N°263, 14 August 2018 (also available in
Burundi: anatomie du troisième mandat, Africa       French).
 Report N°235, 20 May 2016 (only available in      Helping the Burundian People Cope with the
 French).                                           Economic Crisis, Africa Report N°264, 31
Katanga: Tensions in DRC’s Mineral Heartland,       August 2018 (also available in French).
 Africa Report N°239, 3 August 2016.               Election présidentielle au Cameroun : les
The African Union and the Burundi Crisis:            fractures se multiplient, Africa Briefing N°142,
 Ambition versus Reality, Africa Briefing            3 October 2018 (also available in French).
 N°122, 28 September 2016 (also available in       Chad: Defusing Tensions in the Sahel, Africa
 French).                                           Report N°266, 5 December 2018 (also
Boulevard of Broken Dreams: The “Street” and        available in French).
 Politics in DR Congo, Africa Briefing N°123,
 13 October 2016.                                  Horn of Africa
Cameroon: Confronting Boko Haram, Africa           Ethiopia: Governing the Faithful, Africa Briefing
 Report N°241, 16 November 2016 (also                N°117, 22 February 2016.
 available in French).                             Sudan’s Islamists: From Salvation to Survival,
Fighting Boko Haram in Chad: Beyond Military        Africa Briefing N°119, 21 March 2016.
  Measures, Africa Report N°246, 8 March 2017      South Sudan’s South: Conflict in the Equatorias,
  (also available in French).                       Africa Report N°236, 25 May 2016.
Burundi: The Army in Crisis, Africa Report         Kenya’s Coast: Devolution Disappointed, Africa
 N°247, 5 April 2017 (also available in French).    Briefing N°121, 13 July 2016.
Cameroon’s Anglophone Crisis at the                South Sudan: Rearranging the Chessboard,
 Crossroads, Africa Report N°250, 2 August          Africa Report N°243, 20 December 2016.
 2017 (also available in French).                  Instruments of Pain (II): Conflict and Famine in
Avoiding the Worst in Central African Republic,      South Sudan, Africa Briefing N°124, 26 April
 Africa Report N°253, 28 September 2017              2017.
 (also available in French).                       Instruments of Pain (III): Conflict and Famine in
Time to Reset African Union-European Union           Somalia, Africa Briefing N°125, 9 May 2017.
  Relations, Africa Report N°255, 17 October       Instruments of Pain (IV): The Food Crisis in
  2017 (also available in French).                   North East Nigeria, Africa Briefing N°126, 18
Cameroon: A Worsening Anglophone Crisis              May 2017.
 Calls for Strong Measures, Africa Briefing        Kenya’s Rift Valley: Old Wounds, Devolution’s
 N°130, 19 October 2017 (also available in          New Anxieties, Africa Report N°248, 30 May
 French).                                           2017.
Cameroon’s Far North: Reconstruction amid          Time to Repeal U.S. Sanctions on Sudan?,
 Ongoing Conflict, Africa Briefing N°133, 25         Africa Briefing N°127, 22 June 2017.
 October 2017 (also available in French).          A New Roadmap to Make U.S. Sudan
Time for Concerted Action in DR Congo, Africa        Sanctions Relief Work, Africa Briefing N°128,
  Report N°257, 4 December 2017 (also                29 September 2017.
  available in French).                            How to Ensure a Credible, Peaceful Presidential
Seven Priorities for the African Union in 2018,     Vote in Kenya, Africa Briefing N°129,
 Africa Briefing N°135, 17 January 2018 (also       2 October 2017.
 available in French).

Improving Prospects for a Peaceful Transition in Sudan
Crisis Group Africa Briefing N°143, 14 January 2019                                         Page 15

Managing the Disruptive Aftermath of Somalia’s      Herders against Farmers: Nigeria’s Expanding
 Worst Terror Attack, Africa Briefing N°131, 20      Deadly Conflict, Africa Report N°252, 19
 October 2017.                                       September 2017.
An Election Delay Can Help Avert Kenya’s            The Social Roots of Jihadist Violence in Burkina
 Crisis, Africa Briefing N°132, 23 October           Faso’s North, Africa Report N°254, 12
 2017.                                               October 2017 (also available in French).
Uganda’s Slow Slide into Crisis, Africa Report      Finding the Right Role for the G5 Sahel Joint
 N°256, 21 November 2017.                             Force, Africa Report N°258, 12 December
After Kenya’s Leaders Reconcile, a Tough Path         2017 (also available in French).
  Ahead, Africa Briefing N°136, 13 March 2018.      Preventing Boko Haram Abductions of
Somalia and the Gulf Crisis, Africa Report            Schoolchildren in Nigeria, Africa Briefing
 N°260, 5 June 2018.                                  N°137, 12 April 2017.
Averting War in Northern Somalia, Africa            Frontière Niger-Mali : mettre l’outil militaire au
 Briefing N°141, 27 June 2018.                        service d’une approche politique, Africa
                                                      Report N°261, 12 June 2018 (only available in
Al-Shabaab Five Years after Westgate: Still a
                                                      French).
  Menace in East Africa, Africa Report N°265,
  21 September 2018.                                Stopping Nigeria’s Spiralling Farmer-Herder
                                                      Violence, Africa Report N°262, 26 July 2018.
Southern Africa                                     Drug Trafficking, Violence and Politics in
Zimbabwe: Stranded in Stasis, Africa Briefing        Northern Mali, Africa Report N°267, 13
  N°118, 29 February 2016.                           December 2018 (also available in French).
Zimbabwe’s “Military-assisted Transition” and       Nigeria’s 2019 Elections: Six States to Watch,
  Prospects for Recovery, Africa Briefing N°134,      Africa Report N°268, 21 December 2018.
  20 December 2017.

West Africa
Burkina Faso: Transition, Act II, Africa Briefing
 N°116, 7 January 2016 (only available in
 French).
Implementing Peace and Security Architecture
  (III): West Africa, Africa Report N°234, 14
  April 2016 (also available in French).
Boko Haram on the Back Foot?, Africa Briefing
 N°120, 4 May 2016 (also available in French).
Nigeria: The Challenge of Military Reform,
  Africa Report N°237, 6 June 2016.
Central Mali: An Uprising in the Making?, Africa
 Report N°238, 6 July 2016 (also available in
 French).
Burkina Faso: Preserving the Religious
 Balance, Africa Report N°240, 6 September
 2016 (also available in French).
Nigeria: Women and the Boko Haram
  Insurgency, Africa Report N°242, 5 December
  2016 (also available in French).
Watchmen of Lake Chad: Vigilante Groups
 Fighting Boko Haram, Africa Report N°244, 23
 February 2017.
Niger and Boko Haram: Beyond Counter-
  insurgency, Africa Report N°245, 27 February
  2017 (also available in French).
The Politics of Islam in Mali: Separating Myth
 from Reality, Africa Report N°249, 18 July
 2017 (only available in French).
Double-edged Sword: Vigilantes in African
 Counter-insurgencies, Africa Report N°251,
 7 September 2017 (also available in French).